The instructors say they tried to help, but were told to keep quiet and stop investigating.

"They made these things known and then they got essentially shut down," said the plaintiffs' attorney Joseph Campbell. "They were threatened both physically and verbally. And ultimately they were fired. I mean, how much worse can it get?"

According to the lawsuit, Phillip Gallegos was fired for, "unprofessional behavior and lying about the Academy."

Anthony Maxwell was fired but given no reason because he was still on probation. Earl Voiles quit and George Puga is still with the agency but off on worker's compensation.

The men's attorney says they were hired to try and fix the LEA. They then found problems like no heat or hot water in the cadets' dorms, instructors giving test questions and answers to the students and missing equipment, including guns.

In response, DPS Secretary Greg Fouratt wrote in an email,"Neither the Secretary nor the Chief Legal Counsel of DPS nor the Director of the NM Law Enforcement Academy has seen a copy of the lawsuit. Nonetheless, the department intends to vigorously defend against the allegations and believes them to be entirely devoid of legal merit."